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<h1><a href="https://archiveofourown.org/works/26907418">Not So Bad</a> by <a class='authorlink' href='https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXQueenofDragonsXx/pseuds/xXQueenofDragonsXx'>xXQueenofDragonsXx</a></h1>

<table class="full">

<tr><td><b>Category:</b></td><td>The Walking Dead (TV)</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Genre:</b></td><td>Being stood up, Carl Grimes is a sweetheart, F/M, First Dates, First Meetings, Inspired By Tumblr, Jimmy is an asshole, POV Beth Greene, Short One Shot</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Language:</b></td><td>English</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Status:</b></td><td>Completed</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Published:</b></td><td>2020-10-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Updated:</b></td><td>2020-10-09</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Packaged:</b></td><td>2021-05-06 23:49:08</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Rating:</b></td><td>General Audiences</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Warnings:</b></td><td>Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Chapters:</b></td><td>1</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Words:</b></td><td>1,087</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Publisher:</b></td><td>archiveofourown.org</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Story URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/works/26907418</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Author URL:</b></td><td>https://archiveofourown.org/users/xXQueenofDragonsXx/pseuds/xXQueenofDragonsXx</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Summary:</b></td><td><div class="userstuff">
              <p>Beth's date doesn't show up. Right as she's about to leave, a handsome stranger by the name of Carl Grimes ends up being her savior.</p>
            </div></td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Relationships:</b></td><td>Beth Greene/Carl Grimes</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Comments:</b></td><td>68</td></tr>

<tr><td><b>Kudos:</b></td><td>16</td></tr>

</table>

<a name="section0001"><h2>Not So Bad</h2></a>
<div class="story"><div class="userstuff module">
    
    <p>Beth Greene took a long sip of her wine before placing the glass back down onto the table. Her fingers drummed against the tabletop, and she worried her bottom lip, her foot tapping against the wooden floor impatiently as she waited. She glanced around the restaurant for what felt like the hundredth time since she's gotten here, looking for the person who still hadn't shown up. Jimmy. He had said that he'd be here an hour ago, and yet no matter how long she waited for him to appear, he hadn't shown up. Maybe he was running late? He'd done it before, but never for this long. </p><p> </p><p>She gritted her teeth, reaching a hand to play with a strand of her long blonde hair, twirling it anxiously in between her fingers. She then glanced up at the clock: <em>6:34 P.M.</em> He should've been here by now -- hell, they should've been finishing up with their meal at this point -- but despite this, he hadn't shown, and the longer she waited, the more she doubted he ever would. A horrible thought lingered near the back of her mind, steadily growing stronger with every passing second, and no matter how much she tried pushing it back, it continued to blare loudly in her brain like the beating of drums.</p><p> </p><p>What if he had stood Beth up?</p><p> </p><p>The mere idea of it seemed impossible to Beth. Jimmy seemed like such a nice boy when she'd met him, and when he'd asked her on a date the other day, she'd been over the moon about it. But now that she's waited over an hour for him to show up without any success, the possibility that he had stood her up seemed much more likely than it had before, much more likely than she'd like to admit, and she hated it. Hated the fact that she had been so excited about the date only for him to leave her here all alone. Hated that he was most likely with his friends somewhere snickering about what a foolish little girl she was. </p><p> </p><p>With every single thought that came to mind, her once joyful mood had begun to sour, but she continued to push it back. To be honest, a small part of her was still hoping that it was all one big misunderstanding. That at any moment, Jimmy would be walking through those doors. That he would be apologizing rapidly with a bouquet of flowers in hand as he sat down across from her. She imagined that he would explain whatever it was that had made him late, and that, despite everything, the two of them would continue on with their date as they had planned.</p><p> </p><p>But with every minute that passed by with no Jimmy, that little flare of hope began to diminish bit by bit. She sighed, biting her lip and glancing back toward the door. Another group of people had filtered in now, but none of them were Jimmy. <em>I can't believe this. </em></p><p> </p><p>One of the waitresses approached her table with a wine bottle, refilling Beth's glass wordlessly. She smiled, though she didn't have to look to know it was strained, taking the glass and bringing it back to her lips again, eyes flickering to the door once more. She heaved a small sigh, and the waitress cleared her throat, causing Beth to glance up at her.</p><p> </p><p>"Are you ready to order miss," asked the waitress, her voice soft and filled with sympathy, as if she knew just how Beth was feeling. She was starting to get pitiful looks from the other people in the restaurant, and sit was taking every bit of willpower she had not to storm out of the place right then and there. </p><p> </p><p>"A few more minutes please," Beth requested, putting the wine glass back down. The woman simply smiled, nodding sadly and patting Beth on the shoulder in a way that the blonde could only assume was meant to be comforting. If anything, the action felt patronizing. She tried to stamp down that feeling of irritation that flared up at this, but she had a feeling she wasn't succeeding. </p><p> </p><p>The small diner that Beth was seated in was gradually filling up more and more, the noise level in the place much louder than she would have preferred. Her eyes scoured the building once more, scanning every nook and cranny, trying to hold back the tears that were now starting to well up in her eyes. Oh god, was she really going to start crying about this? This was so humiliating. </p><p> </p><p>Beth lifted her hand, wiping her hand across her face and trying to stop the tears from falling. She shouldn't be crying over a stupid boy. That was what Maggie always told her when they were younger -- and still did whenever Beth went out on dates. It was advice that Beth had followed almost religiously as she grew, and because of it hadn't cried over a boy before, so she certainly wasn't about to start doing that now. Beth would rather die. And sure, maybe she was being a bit dramatic, but it was the truth -- plain and simple. </p><p> </p><p>Beth bit back a groan, downing the rest of her wine and grabbing her bag. She wasn't going to be sitting here any longer; she was going home. She didn't care if Jimmy showed up sometime after she left. If he really cared about this date, then he should have texted her or something to at least tell her what was going on. </p><p> </p><p>She had just made a move to stand up when a man -- a handsome brunet who was a little younger than her by the looks of it -- slid down in the seat across from her, exclaiming loudly: "Hey, sorry I'm so late, babe, traffic is crazy out there!" And then, leaning in slightly, his dark hair falling in front of his face, he whispered, "my name's Carl, by the way, just go with it, yeah? Whoever didn't bother to show up is a huge fucking douche."</p><p> </p><p>Beth, both relieved and taken aback, let a small smile spread across her face. "Thank you. And yeah, he kind of is." </p><p> </p><p>He smiled back at her, a small blush staining his cheeks. "No problem."</p><p> </p><p>As Beth settled back down, Carl waved over the waitress, who hurried over to take their orders. Warmth flooded her chest, and Beth couldn't stop the grin that now split her face.</p><p> </p><p>Maybe this night wouldn't be so bad after all.</p>
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